What is the meaning of the symbols and markings on German fighter ac?

Answer 1

Markings for Typical Jagdeschwader (JG) FormationFighter Aircraft were usually marked with a number before the National Insignia and a Symbol after it, such as : 9 + ~

First number (9) is the aircraft ID, in either WHITE, RED or YELLOW. National Insignia Symbol [ (no symbol) - | or ~ o ] is aft of the National insignia and was also WHITE, RED or YELLOW.

The typical JG was divided into 3 Groups but some had 4. For illustration, this will assume a JG with 3 Groups.

I Group - Group Symbol was No symbol after the National Insignia. Included 1st(WHITE), 2nd(RED), 3rd(YELLOW) Staffels.

II Group - Group Symbol was a Horizontal Bar (-). Included 4th(WHITE), 5th(RED), 6th(YELLOW) Staffels.

III Group - Group Symbol was a Vertical Bar (|) but for some units it could be a Horizontal 's' or (~). Inclued 7 , 8 and 9 Staffels.

Within each group there were 3 Staffels, each with a different color. The Color would be used for the A/C ID No. and the Group Symbol. The colors were. First Staffel was WHITE, Second was RED and Third was YELLOW.

Thus an aircraft marked with a RED "4" in front of National Insignia and No Symbol after it, was an aircraft flown with Group I, 2nd Staffel.

Aircraft marked in WHITE with 9 + | was an a/c from III Group, 7th Staffel.

The leader of the Staffel was usually identified with "1". If a JG unit had a Group IV, then its color was BLACK, and would include Staffels 10, 11, & 12.

Group LeadersSince the Group Leaders commanded over three Staffels(marked with White, Red & Yellow), then the leader's aircraft simply used BLACK. All leaders marked their aircraft in BLACK symbols, such as < or or << .

Group commander would be a chevron and a triangle << . The Adjutant would be marked with one Chevron <. The Technical Officer would be marked with a Chevron and an open Circle JG StaffThe JG Staff would be identified with two chevrons or a combination of a chevron and one or two Vertical Bars. <<| <| <<- <Other A/C MarkingsOther fighter aircraft can be found that have identification that are pairs of letters such as CI + EJ . Generally, these markings, which are very similar to how Bombers were identified, were used for Training or Test aircraft.

Fuselage Bands - Colored bands were painted around the aft fuselage of Fighters. This simply represented the region it was stationed, such as Russian Front, OR it was used later in the war to represent defense of the Homeland. There are a variety of types and colors that were used.